100,000 people are expected to attend the Punchestown Festival starting on Tuesday, April 30th and running for five days.

After concerns were raised over pricing at the Cheltenham Festival this year where tickets to attend were £100 the team at Punchestown were keen to point out to English as well as Irish fans that Punchestown tickets had been reduced this year to €30 on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday and €40 on Friday and Saturday.

With as much as 25 per cent of the record crowd at the Dublin Racing Festival at Leopardstown in February coming from across the water the message is getting through.

The five-day social and sporting highlight is a homecoming celebration of Irish jump racing, sport and culture.

This year’s prize fund is over €3.4 million, with twelve top-tier grade one contests, season champions like Galopin Des Champs and household names including Willie Mullins, Rachael Blackmore and Paul Townend in action.

Beyond the parade ring and into the enclosures the Punchestown Festival is Ireland’s largest sporting corporate hospitality event and will host over 17,000 guests across an impressive array of restaurants, pavilions and suites.

The first two days of the 2024 Festival will revert to a 2.30 pm start from the current time of 3.40 pm. Market research shows that around 70% of paying clients would ‘definitely or most probably’ like to see some of the festival days start and finish earlier.

Following a full review of ticket pricing and products there will be that price reduction to €30 for the first three days and €40 for Friday and Saturday of the Festival for advance purchased tickets.

There will be an additional €5 per ticket charge for on-the-day purchases excluding senior, student and family day concession tickets that can only be purchased on the day.

The festival layout will undergo a refresh including the removal of the traditional reserved enclosure divide and the introduction of exciting new features around the parade ring enclosure.

“We say it time and time again that people make Punchestown,” said CEO Conor Nolan.

“It is those very people who have shaped and informed this year’s Festival and the changes we have made.”

“If it doesn’t work for the customer it ultimately won’t work for Punchestown, so I hope we’ve got the balance right as we look ahead to welcoming friends old and new to the 2024 upcoming Punchestown Festival.”

The 2024 Punchestown Festival will take place from Tuesday 30th April to Saturday 4th May.

Sport for Business Perspective:

The reduction in price of day tickets was a topic of discussion around Cheltenham this year where the price of admission to see many of the same horse was four times higher. Staying ahead of the curve in customer sentiment is important and Punchestown deserves the reward of a stronger than ever overseas visitor pool as well as the backing of Irish racing fans who can celebrate another year of real success.

 

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